On this Third Sunday of Easter, Fr Will reflects on how, like Saint Peter in John 21:1-19, following Christ means embracing the daily challenges of discipleship. Peter’s journey reminds us that even after failure, Jesus calls us to deeper love and to “feed my sheep” by serving others.
Transcript
Jesus has resurrected friends, Alleluia! And now we get hone in on one of the great characters of our Gospels, Saint Peter. We don’t really know how Saint Peter was feeling after the resurrection of Jesus, but we get this sense that he felt defeated, especially after having renounced Jesus three times. So what does Saint Peter do? Well, he goes back to what he knows, he goes fishing. We know that discipleship with Jesus meant that everything was left behind, including profession, but what else does a person do when a cloud of doubt and loss fills the air? They go back to what they know. When we sin, we feel the defeat of our efforts. Sometimes we think we’re not good enough for the journey of Christianity. Sometimes we’re overwhelmed by our failure, that we think it better not to pursue virtue or Christianity at all. We go back to what feels comfortable and familiar, which is not Christianity because Christianity is tough. Christianity is pick up your cross daily and follow me. That’s not easy. But what we see unfolding here this weekend is a beautiful reminder of the Lord’s pursuit of us as we pursue the Lord. Jesus comes out to the shore, He gives them something to eat and then He singles out Saint Peter and asks him famously, do you love me? Question we ourselves are being asked today, do you love me? Friends, whether you feel defeated, victorious or in between, come to Christ anyway. Give to the Lord what you have and give without reserve. For the Lord will meet us in our giving by meeting us in the mess of our lives. The Lord will nourish us through the sacraments. The Lord will transform what little love we have and make it self-sacrificial. We need only surrender it to the Lord. It’s in this pattern of surrender to the Lord that we tap into the nature of resurrection and rise with the Lord from our sinfulness, our brokenness and our darkness to live in light. May we enjoy this season of resurrection by leaning into surrender with the Lord and living in Christ’s resurrection.